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#1 UNI Knocks Out New Hampshire, 38-35

 Panthers will advance to take on Delaware on December 1st

CEDAR FALLS, IOWA (11/24/08) - Eric Sanders threw a 24-yard TD pass to Montari Leonard with 7 seconds left to give top-seeded Northern Iowa a 38-35 victory over New Hampshire on Saturday night in the opening round of the FCS playoffs.

Corey Williams added 220 yards rushing and three touchdowns for Northern Iowa (12-0), which drove 71 yards in the final 1:16 without any timeouts.

The Panthers will host Delaware (9-3) next week in the quarterfinals.

New Hampshire (7-5), which had trailed for much of the game, took its first lead, 35-31, on Chad Kackert's 15-yard touchdown run with 1:16 left. At that point it appeared that New Hampshire might get payback for 2005, when the top-seeded Wildcats fell to Northern Iowa at home in the first round.

But Sanders, a senior, calmly led the Panthers to their sixth consecutive first-round win. He hit Victor Williams for a pass that, after two laterals, moved the Panthers to the New Hampshire 24. Sanders got a little help on the winning throw, as Leonard juggled the ball, almost lost it over his shoulder, then corralled it.

New Hampshire attempted a series of laterals on the ensuing kickoff, but the last pitch by the Wildcats went over the head of a player and out of bounds.

Ricky Santos, the 2006 Walter Payton Award winner as the top player in FCS, was 26-of-35 passing for 251 yards and two touchdowns for New Hampshire. He led the Wildcats 75 yards for a go-ahead score in the final drive of a record-setting career.

Sanders completed 27 of 36 passes for 314 yards, and Williams broke the school record for rushing yards in the postseason.

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, November 21, 2007 9:23 PM CST
Saturday's game nearly sold out

 
CEDAR FALLS --- Northern Iowa's ticket office has sold out for Saturday's 6:35 p.m. Football Championship Subdivision playoff game between the top-ranked Panthers and New Hampshire, university officials said late Wednesday.

A few tickets may still be available at the Cedar Falls Wal-Mart, Waterloo and Cedar Falls Scheel's stores, University Book and Supply and the Crossroads and College Square Hy-Vee Food Stores.

The largest crowd UNI has ever drawn for a first-round playoff game is 13,149 for a 1992 game against Eastern Washington. The most the Panthers have ever drawn for any round was 14,682 for the 1992 semifinals against Youngstown State.

Mediacom, CFU will televise playoffs

CEDAR FALLS --- Cedar Falls Utilities and Mediacom have announced plans to televise Saturday's Northern Iowa-New Hampshire Football Championship Subdivision playoff game.

No television rights were released by the NCAA until the game approached sellout status Wednesday.

"For those who might not be able to get a ticket, we will have Panther football on TV for each playoff game as the team advances," said CFU general manager Jim Krieg.

CFU will carry Saturday's game on channel 17. Mediacom will carry it on its Mediacom Connections channel (22).

 

Monday, November 19, 2007 12:01 PM CST
Panthers take No. 1 seeding into playoffs
By DOUG NEWHOFF, Courier Sports Editor
 
CEDAR FALLS --- A standing-room-only crowd packed Becks on the Hill Sunday in anticipation of the first No. 1 playoff seed in Northern Iowa's football history.

They weren't disappointed as the NCAA's Football Championship Subdivision playoff committee made the top-ranked, 11-0 Panthers the team to beat when the 16-team postseason begins this weekend.

And, in an unexpected twist, UNI will host 7-4 New Hampshire in the opening round at 6:35 p.m. Saturday in the UNI-Dome. Two years ago, the Panthers went to Durham, N.H., when the Wildcats were the country's top-ranked team and upset them, 24-21, on the way to the NCAA championship game.

Sunday, New Hampshire became just the fourth four-loss team to ever earn an at-large bid to the playoffs.

"I think they like to see some of these matchups from the past," said UNI senior quarterback Eric Sanders. "At the same time, everybody in these playoffs is good. Each round's going to be a test for us, so we've just go to keep our focus and play our kind of football."

New Hampshire is one of a record five Colonial Athletic Association teams to make the field, joining Delaware, Massachusetts, James Madison and Richmond. The Wildcats, who are coached by Sean McDonnell and feature all-American and reigning Walter Payton Award winner Ricky Santos at quarterback, will be making their sixth playoff appearance and third in a row.

Tickets for the general public go on sale Tuesday on a first-come, first-serve basis at the UNI ticket office, at UNIPanthers.com or by filling out the form on page C6 of Sunday's Courier and sending it to the UNI Athletic Office, UNI-Dome NW Lower, Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0313. For more information, call 273-4849.

 

Sunday, November 18, 2007 7:58 PM CST
Panthers get top seed; playing New Hampshire

 
CEDAR FALLS --- The No. 1-ranked University of Northern Iowa Panthers earned a No. 1 seed in the Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs Sunday.

They will play New Hampshire in the UNI-Dome Saturday at 6:35 p.m.

The Panthers, coaches and fans gathered at Beck's on the Hill Sunday afternoon to watch the playoff announcement. The only other Gateway team to make the playoffs was Southern Illinois, which earned a fourth seed.

New Hampshire is the only 7-4 team to make this year's playoffs. In 2005, New Hampshire was the No. 1 seed and UNI went out there to play them and beat them. That was the year that UNI went all the way to the championship game, losing to Appalachian State.

The 11-0 Panthers made history Saturday night, ending its first regular season ever without a loss. The Panthers cruised past Southern Utah 48-10.

 

3/12/06

UNI Panther Men's Basketball Team Makes the NCAA Tournament

The University of Northern Iowa men's basketball team (23-9) will face the Georgetown Hoyas (21-10) in Dayton, Ohio, this Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Panthers are the no. 10 seed and the Georgetown Hoyas are the no. 7 seed in the Minneapolis Region. This is the third straight year in the NCAA Tournament for the Panthers, and their highest seed ever in the tournament.  Go Panthers!!

 

 

 

Tigers win Gold & take the State Championship for the 3rd year in a row!!